melodiesoflife | #11 | Everything will be alright

Entry tags:

#11 | Everything will be alright

Characters: Sephiroth (Open/Closed as sub-comments)
Where/When: 19th June; Aqures Ixen, 21st June; Esdham
Summary: Having returned from Crystal Stasis, there is a lot to touch base with. As prompted in the sub-comments.
Warnings: N/A (Yet? Will update as needed)

Prologue

Sephiroth had come home from the hospital only briefly the previous day. Without even much of a glance around for his housemates he'd crossed the familiar threshold feeling an odd sort of deja vu that could only be compared to when one went away for an extended vacation and then returned back to their more permanent abode.

But really, he knew he hadn't been anywhere, even if his body were still adjusting as if he had been returned from Gaia once more. Exactly like when he had first arrived in Aqures; movement felt sluggish, awareness was blunted. It seemed even breathing seemed to take more effort. Having experienced a 'drop' from mako on previous occasions, though, as well as following some advise from the nurses at the hospital too Sephiroth knew that soon the haze which he currently perceived as a great weakness would lift as if it had never been there. Just as that tell-tale gleam would again fade form his eyes.

He'd confiscated the bathroom and then, looping his long silver hair -restored in thickness and length- up and around in a loose knot he'd headed out again for the Military Airport where he knew there was work to be done; leaving his leather coat hung on the back of the wardrobe door, the pants neatly folded on the end of his bed and the SOLDIER motif of his belt set atop it as if it were some sort of ritual.

It had been into the early hours of the next morning before Sephiroth had retired home again.

>Prompt #1: Back into the regime
>Prompt #2: Visiting someone
>Prompt #3: Touching Base

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Could so much really have happened in just two weeks?

It was his duty, of course, to catch a personnel shuttle back to Esdham as soon as he managed to get affairs in Aqures back in order. Sephiroth wasn't yet ready to sign back on for duty but at the very least he wanted to get a lay of the land, so that he could better judge what exactly to prepare for, before deciding on how long his next tour at Esdham might be. Biggs had mentioned that things were undoubtedly going to get a lot busier within the military soon as the Herans started to quake in the approach of the expanding Calamity.

He almost felt guilty, during the brief with his Superior Officer, that Cid had managed to obtain a special clearance of leave for him so that he might lend his assistance to the Airship effort. Sephiroth wasn't even that great of an engineer, where tactics in a military setting were far more his forte. It seemed, indeed, that another great push might be on the horizon any day now.

He intended to go to check his inventory at least, to take the time to decide if he might stay a few days or not, yet as Sephiroth approached the door to barracks a heavy -mostly involuntary- sigh was released. Was he sure that he should even be here, anymore? It hadn't been that long at all but already he felt more than a little uncomfortable. Perhaps he'd exhausted his use here now, where he couldn't be the legendary SOLDIER that he expected of himself?

For Jade, the past two weeks had passed slower than he would have liked. Not because there was nothing to do -- indeed, there was always something, whether it was blitzball or more battles -- but because most of it had been spent on travel time. While Stiltzkin's Castle had in itself made for an interesting visit, he didn't miss the slow days on the boat with little to do but to keep an eye on the Mognet.

At least it had given him time to think. After what happened in his memory, perhaps the relatively stress-free trip had been just what he needed to wind down.

A brief stop in Aqures Ixen later, and Jade was back in Esdham, already working as though he had never left. It seemed to have come as a relief to some of the personnel; not having any of their Heroes present had put them on edge.

And speaking of Heroes... Jade stopped on the path to the barracks. There was no mistaking that silver hair. He'd considered responding to the letter on Mognet, but there hadn't been much need. Sephiroth was a soldier through and through, after all, and a soldier's place was on the battlefield. Jade had expected him to return sooner or later.

"There you are. I was wondering how long you were going to nap." Jade crossed the distance between them, unhurriedly, while giving Sephiroth his usual smile. As though the man really had just returned from a quick break rather than from what could have been a permanent stasis.

Though Sephiroth --as always-- remained blind to it, his own return to Esdham drew more than a handful of appraising glances as he had meandered his way through the military areas. Rumors were the lifeblood of socialization within some of the lower ranking soldiers and though when Jade had returned it had eased some of the tension developing, Sephiroth's eventual appearance only served to draw a longer breath in somewhat - he didn't look like he was reporting for duty; missing his pack and not being in uniform.

Still, the seasoned SOLDIER was used to avoiding and/or ignoring said weighty glances.

Sephiroth paused as Jade's familiar tones pierced the air behind him. It would be his luck that he couldn't avoid a conversation with his fellow-Captain even if he tried to. They worked well enough together, point of fact, but there was still that matter regarding his doppelganger that left the bitter taste of a memory in the back of his throat still. Not to mention the blunt words at the revelation of a scene which was now a memory to him.

"It wasn't much of a restful nap, for what it's worth." He commented, turning back a little to face his comrade. "I trust you've been picking up the slack, in my absence."

"Not as much as I perhaps should have. By the time I realized you were gone, I had already made arrangements for a trip of my own."

The first thing Sephiroth would notice was that, rather than the Black Mage outfit or his own Malkuth uniform, Jade was wearing a White Mage robe. Even after making certain the garment was cut with practicality in mind -- ending just below his knee rather than at his ankles -- he had to admit it wasn't the most militaristic look.

And neither had the role of a healer come to Jade naturally. That his abilities had always, nearly without exception, been geared towards destruction was a part of himself he had come to accept over the years. Now, having access to the one thing he had never had any talent for... it was oddly discomforting. Every attempt he had made to cure or to create had ended in a catastrophe on Auldrant, and yet here he was, casting white magic with no training whatsoever. It felt like he had cheated, somehow.

Of course, it was silly to think of a simple Cure spell as something he didn't deserve to have. The past month had been one of illogical thoughts, it seemed.

It was certainly a different look for Jade, and once Sephiroth had turned to look him over he found he had to double-take a little bit at the somewhat extreme difference in attire. Sephiroth was wearing his 'cooler' variant of his freelance set; the usual leather pants and boots coupled with a loose grey muscle vest, his long silver hair loose and cascading down and around his shoulders sometimes when he moved. He looked just as out of place as Jade might but in a different way.

"Ah, you decided to make a change in Job." Sephiroth put two and two together, knowing of how Jessie had set him an assignment as well, when he had requested the Scholar job.

"How's that going for you?" Anything to avoid the topic of conversation to lean too much in his personal direction.

"Healing is not my area of expertise, I admit. All the more reason to learn it now, don't you think?" Jade could guess what topic Sephiroth was trying to avoid. For the moment, that was fine by him. He was more interested in observing than interrogating, anyway. "We may have survived so far, but there is no telling what we'll be facing in the future. In preparation for that, I intend to master as many Jobs as humanly possible."

Jade had it thought out in a fair amount of detail. The mage Jobs alone would give him a wide variety of attack, support, and utility skills. Combined with the physical might of Dragoon and Magitek Knight, as well as the knowledge of the Scholar and the Blacksmith... There was no end to what he could do.

Whether he'd live long enough to master all of them was another matter entirely, but having long-term plans couldn't hurt.

"Can never have too many White Mage." He was quick to agree, being ever the expert in tactics. It even followed with a nod, and a low chuckle at Jade's intention. Even if he did look somewhat ridiculous in the Job-attire, that could only be an excuse that Sephiroth might use not to pick it up. The idea of using magic was familiar to Sephiroth and it wasn't as if he wouldn't feel comfortable after the necessary time to adjust but-

"Trying to become the legendary Onion Knight?"

It wasn't meant as a tease, really, he knew the old motto of 'be prepared' well having had it drilled into his head from a young age. Sephiroth had heard from Jessie before with regard to the Job that all the other Jobs unlocked, even if he hadn't used it at all yet - having still Job slots in his Crystal still unused.

"Oh, I don't know if I could bear being named after a foodstuff," Jade said with a chuckle of his own. One of these days he'd have to take the time to look up why someone thought that was a good name for the most powerful Job of all.

"But in all seriousness -- I see no reason to limit my options. One must never grow complacent with their skills and knowledge, after all." He strolled over to join Sephiroth on the way inside the barracks, assuming he was going in. "Besides, I'm not getting any younger. It would be a terrible shame if I keeled over before I could learn everything there is to learn."

He wasn't quite elderly yet -- but compared to most soldiers in Auldrant, he was steadily approaching the older end of the spectrum. Given how large the age differences tended to get, people needed little prompting to call him an old man. Usually behind his back, if they were smart.

"Hm." If Jade didn't get it, the fact that an Onion had multiple layers that made it up and how that referred, then it wasn't his problem at all. Or maybe his comrade were trying to make a joke out of it. Thankfully he backed it up with a more serious justification.

As Jade approached, Sephiroth pushed the door open and strode through the door first, holding it for Jade to pass through as well.

"I see your point but there is always something to be said in regards to playing to your strengths. There are Jobs that I simply wouldn't do well in at all. Besides-" Sephiroth continued as he made his way through the barracks towards the room he shared with a couple of other soldiers when he was on duty.

"-it's better to be prepared for anything, at any given time. It's a risk, to split your efforts across many when you could specialize in a few."

Meaningful name or no, it still sounded silly to him. But nevermind that.

"Now now, it's not as though I pick my Jobs randomly. My strength lies in absorbing knowledge quickly, especially when it comes to magic. With each Job I master, my understanding of magic grows deeper." Not just in battle, hopefully. This entire world seemed to run on magic of some kind, be it through crystals or Magitek. Jade had long since begun to tire of not understanding how the planet worked.

"Perhaps if I were to specialize in more physical roles, I would spend time honing my body with a smaller number of Jobs as well. As it stands..." Jade shrugged, keeping in step with Sephiroth. "Call me greedy, but it goes against my nature to settle for only one field."

It wasn't so busy within the barracks at the time of day that Sephiroth had decided to have a look in. The briefing with his SO had taken a lot longer than he might ever have imagined it doing. To think, he'd been gone for only two weeks, and so much had happened. Or rather, there were squad dynamics that he needed to be kept up to date on.

As such, there were only a handful of others milling around and none of them were in Sephiroth's end of the building. The perfect environment for the two Heroes to talk about their Jobs without having to endure the probing looks that many of the indigenous population might give; considering they could only infuse themselves with one of the Jobs it sometimes became a bone of contention within the military ranks.

"Hm." Sephiroth acknowledged as he listened to Jade explain. He too, had always been a quick learner but it wasn't as if one could simply translate Gaian magic into Crystillian. He was gifted in both magic and melee but there wasn't really a Job that covered the same technique that was present in materia use. Considering within their current circumstances, such a thing did not exist.

At the mention of physical roles, Sephiroth's eyebrow raised slightly and he looked over Jade more carefully. Clearly he knew well that there were other melee-type Jobs that he could pick up but it had just so happened that the two he'd first arrived with had suited him best. It was still more than a little annoying how Warrior simply didn't award him the agility Dragoon had and so his legendary sword had become little more than a ornament.

"I do see your point. However, there remains the fact that we are often called upon to deliver our best on the battlefield; within Esdham or not, and taking up a new Job significantly weakens performance."

A large part of Sephiroth's own pride prevented him from replacing the Warrior Job; he had no desire whatsoever to appear even weaker than he already was by circumstance of their state of being in this realm.

Although Jade lived in a different part of the barracks, he had decided to accompany Sephiroth on the way to his room. It wasn't far out of the way, and in any case, he did have something he meant to bring up before they parted. For the time being, though, he merely smiled in a way that revealed nothing of what he was thinking.

"Well, you are not wrong." Jade's eyes squinted in amusement then, as though he had just thought of some private joke. "But as it happens, Crystallis was not the first time I've had to start over from square one in mid-crisis."

The first time it had happened had not been voluntary. Having his fon slots sealed by Largo had been a lesson in not only humility, but in navigating a land on a brink of full-scale war with nothing but novice artes and his own wits. And, of course, with Luke and the others at his side. That their then dysfunctional team had managed to survive long enough to stop Van was a testament to their ability to adapt in emergencies.

He had considered whether continuing to depend on his black magic wouldn't be a safer choice. At the same time, it wasn't as though a reasonably skilled White Mage and a Magitek Knight occupying an armor were anything to sneeze at, either. You couldn't play it safe all the time without your abilities eventually growing stagnant.

It was more than a little strange having a companion to walk the route to what had been his area since the previous barracks had been reduced to ashes. Usually Sephiroth made the trip alone, at varying times of the day depending on when he was rota-d to be on or off duty. It felt a little like his legs and feet had the path memorized, and more strange in that he entered his own personal living space not in uniform...and not immediately dropping on the bed to undo his boots first in preparation for the inevitable shower he would hit.

He still went to sit down, as there was a general lack of anywhere else to sit other than the small work desk he had against the wall nearby. A subtle nod to Jade granted him the permission to sit on the simple chair set there, if he wanted to.

"I see. Well, that would be where we both differ then. Being brought here, I learned a lot of what I had taken for granted before."

Jade took him up on the unvoiced offer and pulled out the chair, crossing both his legs and arms out of habit as he took a seat. Unsurprisingly, there was little in the room that would reveal anything of its owner -- or rather, perhaps the lack of decorum spoke for itself.

"Frustrating though it may be, starting fresh does force you to rethink how you fight. I find the insight welcome, but to each their own." There was that special something you got when you delved into something completely new. Jade had always hated not knowing things, ever since he was a child, and that had driven him to soak up everything he could get his hands on, no matter how challenging or out of his field. Even as the range of topics he didn't know about had grown smaller, the thirst for knowledge when he did encounter something unknown had only become stronger.

"In any case, while we are on the topic of Jobs... I gave Jessie the file on Custom Jobs from the ancient computer. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem like she'll be able to make much of it at present."

That particular military standard of keeping everything pristine and squared away had been a habit Sephiroth picked up from an early age and it spoke to his own personal standards of pride, upkeep and privacy; as if the obvious fact that he took good care of himself individually wasn't enough of a tell. The desk by the chair in which Jade sat was completely bare except for a small stack of papers folded up with a small paperweight atop them.

"It was certainly an experience, that was a fact." He didn't make any effort at all in concealing the fact that yet again Sephiroth had found himself in something of a 'transition' period after returning from stasis. Like Jade, Sephiroth had exhibited a thirst for knowledge that had been near prodigious when he'd been growing up. Even upon reaching a peak, as an adult he had continued to surpass limitations when it came to what he was good at...but having all of that hard work pretty much stripped away he had stubbornly denied at first and to this day still disliked how he were a mere shadow of his potential in Crystallis.

Especially since said potential were needed, if he were going to rise to the various challenges thrust upon them.

His more-than-slightly irritated expression blinked into something more curious though as Jade brought up the next subject. Custom Jobs. Of course he remembered them. Granted, his doppelganger had done terrible things but the strength there had been undeniable.

"Hm, sounds like I missed something. Where did you come across this file?"

While he could relate to the dislike of having one's hard work stripped away, Jade couldn't help but find the added handicap intriguing. Being forced to achieve a goal with limited resources and still coming out on top -- it was a satisfying feeling.

Of course, there were times when efficiency had to take priority over intellectual challenge. Stroking your ego was pointless if it got you killed.

"Oh, did I not mention it? The ancient computer bought from O'aka contained an encrypted file titled 'Custom Jobs'. I managed to find some help in decrypting it and gave it to Jessie."

Jade uncrossed his legs to sit more comfortably and steepled his hands. "However, it seems she can't do anything of merit with it without years of work. At least, not without help from someone who already knows about Custom Jobs or about accessing our real powers."

Even if Jade had mentioned it before, with everything else that had hit against the battered shores of Sephiroth's sense of identity recently --not to mention the stasis he was still just about getting over-- it was quite likely that the information had been buried. An eyebrow raised in response as Jade then made to sit more comfortably, and he seemed to turn himself minutely towards his comrade as he listened intently.

He wondered if it had been Genesis that had perhaps helped Jade, being as he was the only Scholar that Sephiroth knew of that might be able to read the ancient language. Perhaps it was someone else entirely, either way it was impressive.

Not so impressive was the apparent obstacle they found in their way. Sephiroth's eyebrows had dropped into his deep-thinking frown as he mulled over the problem. It took a lot of effort to do so, being as it seemed so long ago already but he thought back, to that one time he had access to his real powers...however there were consequences. Sephiroth still remembered taking his last breath that time. He visibly shuddered before blinking his eyes back up to Jade from where they had fallen to the floor.

"Apologies." He blinked a few more times before deciding to ascertain how much Jade knew about it first before. It would give him time to figure out how to explain in a way that wasn't going to directly refer him back to that whole business with the doppelganger.

"Remind me, when was it that you arrived in Crystallis for the first time?"

The translation process had in fact been very fast with the Jessie's program. Jade had been surprised about that. Given how much of the Ancients was still unknown, a program that could translate the language that quickly must be very valuable. Of course, that had still left the decryption... but as it happened, there were quite a few helpful Heroes gifted in programming. An asset that would no doubt serve them well in the future.

Jade watched curiously as Sephiroth's thoughts seemed to go elsewhere for a moment. To painful places, judging by that shudder.

"That was in November. Why, is there something important I missed?"

He had at some point read Zelda's notes on what happened prior to his arrival, but there were likely a number of details he still wasn't aware of. No one seemed to like talking about the prior events.

November.

The deep frown had retreated a little, Sephiroth's eyebrows draw a little nearer together again at the top of his nose as Jade asks that last question. But then he gets up and walks to the edge of the desk near to where Jade is sitting. In a motion very obviously practiced, he removes the paperweight from the stack of papers and takes them in his hands. Skimming the notes, written in his left-handed scrawl, but very much looking for something specific.

It was, after all, a difficult task to keep track of the various months as they had gone by. More often than not Sephiroth told the passage of time by the changing seasons that Crystallis had, more often than paying any real attention to what exact month it was.

"Ah. Of course. That was the month that I enlisted." Putting the papers back on the desk and replacing the weight, he then looked to Jade more directly.

"Do you recall reading anything with regards to the Night of the Thirteen Moogles, Jade?"

Jade waited in silence as Sephiroth stepped closer and picked up his stack of notes. There was clearly something specific on his mind, and Jade saw no reason to rush him with impatient questions.

Sephiroth wasn't one to bring things up for no reason, after all. And sure enough, he soon seemed to have found what he was looking for.

"That would be when you all fell victim to an illness, correct? Something about a ritual to revive a Moogle king." Jade leaned back and stared at the ceiling, momentarily caught in recollection. "As I recall, the incident turned a number of Heroes against each other, resulting in casualties."

That last part had, in fact, been one of the first things he had heard upon arriving in Crystallis. It had meant so little back then, with neither context nor personal attachment to hold his interest. Just another strange thing in a strange new world.

In hindsight, he should have asked more about it back then, while it was still fresh on everyone's minds. This seemed like a good time to fill in the remaining holes.

"That's correct."

That was all he would talk about the various details of that part of that month, thank you very much. That he had been one of those Heroes that had been brainwashed, transformed and turned on the others still remained one of many thorns on the inside of his pride. It had taken Sephiroth a very long time to come to terms with the reasons that Zelda still might want to even speak to him.

Thankfully the thought that had come to his mind was from before that particular night. Angeal breaking a table. Waking up with a particular rush which had him falling down the stairs and suffering no injury. The workout that he'd managed to pull off that day...

"I was one of those that ended up sick. But beforehand..." Sephiroth paused, blinking a few times while he tried to find words that Jade would be able to understand.

"...I wasn't the only one who'd had their real powers returned to them. Everyone that had, had ended up sick."

Jade briefly considered pushing for more details about what happened. However, Sephiroth's actual point sparked his interest, enough so that he decided to let the matter go... for now. He could always ask Zelda later.

"I see... So our powers are still accessible, even if they came at a steep cost." He could see why Sephiroth had brought it up -- and now that his memory was being jogged, he had an inkling of what his comrade had in mind.

"That Moogle who attempted the summoning -- was he confirmed to be the cause of the illness?"

Jade had never gone looking for Mograma back then, during his first month in Crystallis. Chasing after a criminal hadn't been high on his list of priorities when he had had little to no understanding of the situation, and getting to know Aqures Ixen had taken enough of his time as it was. It had worked out without him, in any case, and so he hadn't given it much more thought.

On the other hand, Sephiroth had visited Mograma on a few occasions yet neither time had he managed to get very much out of the mog before he'd clammed up. He'd had some suspicions about that whole affair clarified though. It's after another moment, in which Sephiroth's gaze traces the wood grain of the desk while he cast his mind back, that once more thickly-lashed eyes raised to his comrade.

"As I'm to understand it, the entire thing was engineered as an experiment to test how far the Black Crystals might be able to have an effect on...and later control...us."

Moving swiftly on-

"As Mograma tells it, his loyalty to King Moggle Mog was used as leverage by Kalki, to get him to take part in testing a theory."

Eyes narrow as Sephiroth considers what he remembers and tries to work it in to what he thinks that Jade might be suggesting.

"I believe that the illness was a side-effect, brought about perhaps by this World not being able to support the prolonged use of powers outside of the parameters of its mechanics. But the fact remains, those powers remain locked somehow within our Crystals. Getting said moogle to fill in the gaps, though, might require something more than we're able to attain."

Something about the way Sephiroth said "us" made Jade raise his eyebrows, though he said nothing. He could guess why Sephiroth might be reluctant to go into detail, but that was all it was -- a guess.

It was beside the point, in any case. Jade listened in silence to the explanation. Once Sephiroth had finished speaking, he hummed in thought, tapping his chin.

"It may be worth another attempt to speak with him. If Mograma's loyalty to his king is stronger than whatever allegiance he owes Kalki, I doubt he'd be very happy about the planet turning to crystal. He can't very well revive anybody if the world is destroyed." A pause, and he added: "Besides, if the Empire decides to make a move, Mograma will be right in the line of fire. No matter how you look at it, he's not in a good position."

Black Crystals, though... Yet another thing they knew too little about.

Just a beat later and Sephiroth acknowledged the plan with a grunt and a sharp nod. For sure he had spotted the slight shift in expression on Jade's face, but where his comrade hadn't explicitly asked Sephiroth was under no obligation at all to tell. Best outcome for all parties involved.

"We might be able to use that to our advantage, but I doubt languishing in a prison here in Esdham is going to have softened him up to our cause very much. That said, I'm sure I'm not the only one who it would benefit from having access to skills that we have otherwise, until now, had denied to us."

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jadethenecromancer - 2015-09-23 08:35 (UTC) - Expand

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#11 | Everything will be alright

Prompt #3: Touching Base [21st June // Esdham Military Base] - Jade

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